Apparatus for making variegated hard surface covering



3am M, i 48 v. SPENCER 2,434,292 APPARATUS FOR MAKING VARI'EGATED HARD SURFACE COVERING Original Filed Oct. 2, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet l FIG. 3

FIG. 6

Jan. 13, 1948. i v. SPENCER v 2,434,292

APPARATUS FOR MAKING VARIEGATED HARD SURFACE COVERINGV Original Filed Oct. 2, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 13, 1948 APPARATUS FOR MAKING VARIEGATED HARD SURFACE COVERING Virgil Spencer, East Petersburg, Pa., assignor to Armstrong Cork Company, Lancaster, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Original application October 2, 1940, Serial No. 359,328. Divided and this application June 20, 1944, Serial No. 541,188

6 claims. 1

This application is a division of my copending application, Serial No. 359,328, led October 2, 1940, entitled Method of making variegated hard surface covering, now Patent No. 2,369,866, and relates to an apparatus for making variegated hard surface covering, and more particularly to improvements in an apparatus for making variegated linoleum by what is generally termed the cross-rolling process.

The cross-rolling process of making variegated linoleum as applied to the continuous production of linoleum on rotary inlaying machines of the Walton or Batten type contemplates the formation of a sheet having a denite directional graining commonly called jasp, overlapping a plurality of such sheets and passing the overlapped sheets through a sheeting calender at right angles to the direction of graining thus forming an integral sheet and shortening and spreading the jasp graining of the face of the sheet to obtain the desired variegation which is generally considered to resemble marble. It is known that graining produced by this process varies throughout the thickness of the sheet and that the graining of the back of the sheet bears only a remote resemblance to the graining on the face of the sheet.

One of the chief problems present in such practice resides in the visible discontinuity between sheets where an overlapped or overlapping sheet adheres to and becomes an integral portion of a following or preceding sheet. This phenomenon is termed hook-on in the industry and appears to be a visible distortion of face graining which is not compatible with the required variegation and presents an entirely different appearance at the sections where the overlapped sheets join one another. The cause of hook-on is not known with any degree of certainty but it is believed to be due almost entirely to the abrupt change in volume of material present in the nip of the rolls at the overlapped portions of the sheet and the subsequent iiow and surge of the plastic material resulting from increased pressure. It may be due in part to the fact that in some cases the edge portions of the overlapped sheets presented to the calender rolls turn over slightly when subjected to pressure and thus permit back graining to appear on the face of thesheet. In any event, this visible discontinuity is a serious distortion of face graining which is undesirable and which annually creates an enormous waste in the production of variegated linoleum on rotary inlaying machines.

The chief object of my invention is to provide improvements in apparatus for making variegated hard surface covering by the cross-rolling process designed to eliminate substantially or entirely the visible discontinuity present in those portions of the nished sheet Where overlapped sections join. An object of my invention is to provide apparatus capable of removing a ribbon from a sheet of plastic linoleum composition. A further object is to provide an apparatus for producing variegated linoleum which is economical in operation and highly satisfactory in service. A still further object is to obviate the abrupt change in volume of plastic composition at those places where one sheet joins and adheres to a. second sheet in the manufacture of variegated hard surface covering.

This invention relates to a device for making variegated hard surface covering comprising in combination a sheeting calender adapted to form a sheet having a definite directional graining and means adapted to skive a formed sheet to form an edge portion of less thickness than the body of the sheet.

This invention further relates to a device for making variegated hard surface covering comprising in combination a sheeting calender adapted to form a sheet having a definite directional graining, a skiving tool disposed adjacent thereto adapted to form a recess extending longitudinally of a formed sheet, means for forming an irregular edge at the recessed portion of the sheet, and means for cross-rolling a plurality of sheets disposed in overlapping relationship with the irregular edge of one sheet disposed adjacent the face of a second sheet to form a continuous integral sheet. Y

The attached drawings illustrate a preferred embodiment of my invention in which Figure 1 is a plan view of a device for making variegated hard surface covering by the crossrolling process;

Figure 2 is a view partly in elevation and partly in section of a portion of the device shown in Figure 1, the frame of the device being removed to illustrate the skiving and edge forming mechanism;

Figure 3 is an exaggerated plan view of a sheet severed into sections provided with an irregular sinuous edge;

`Figure 4 is a view in elevation of the edge forming tool used in my process;

Figure 5 is a view in elevation of the skiving tool; and

Figure 6 is a sectional view of a sheet of linoleum composition serving to illustrate the skived recess formed in its under surface.

Suitable mixing equipment is provided for forming two differently colored linoleum compositions. It will be appreciated suitable equipment may be provided for any desired number of differently, colored.. compositions- Thediffer.

ently colored compositions are blended into ai cohesive vari-colored mass which is fed to a tworoll sheeting calender 2 as shown in Figure 1.-

The face roll 3 of the calender 2 is maintained at a lower temperature than the baclcrolladirif order to insure that a formed sheet willadl'ierel thereto rather than to the back roll.4.and to .assistel in securing the desired grainingi Afl'l'ie'roll/{' is... rotated at the same or a slightly greater speed. than the roll 4 which extrudes the Ygranules and p elongates the differently colored granules torsomej extent thus forming what is known as' aA jaspv sheet. A doctor blade (not shown) is usually proy volume offplasticzmaterial present in the nip of l()i the-fcrosserolling calender when overlapped sheets arejoinedand made-into an integral sheet. I haveVfound.that,an.irregular sinuous edge composed-i: of aplurality of connected, undulated sigmoidalcurves materially aids in reducing Visible discontinuity: The term plurality of connected; undulate'dfsigmoidal curves is used herein to define a line formed of a plurality of convided to remove the jasp sheet from the roll3.

Such equipment is Wellknown in the industry andsdoes not require lengthy description for a full andcomplete-understanding of -my apparatus.4

andnmethod. I-havetfound-it-desirable inthe sub.-` stantial` elimination. ofhook-on to provide a recess or groovein the' under. surfacev ofl the formed,- jasp; sheetA in. orderthat, when aJ sheet isV severedzinsections;`each section. will be provided with a thin tapered'edge of lessthickness; tharrthe body'of-the section.. This, .0f course, rna-v teriallyf reduces. the volume of` plastic composition*A present in' the; nipt of; the. cross-rollingcal.- ender; atV those.- points. where.l overlapped sheets arejoined. Such groove or. recess is preferably provided in .the center..` of the: sheet `as z shown in Figure 6 but it will be understoodit-may be pro-- vided atany desiredposition in the. sheet. If it is not desired: to `4later sever thesheet in sections,V suchgroove or` recess-may. begformed. at oneY edgeof the sheet to insure. such'. edge. being; of4 less thickness than thbody of' the. sheet; For thisv purpose there is1provided askivingftooli: (refer to Figure 2) which serves to skive or form aree cess orK groove-6. in a..formedfjaspisheetf.. The skiving tool 5=is preferably:disposedzadjacentthe contour (see Figure 4).

roll 3 .in order'thatthefroll13may.serve asa platen.. t

therefor but it'will. be understoodithetoollf: maybe used toskive1a1-groov'e'` inlthee sheet.' 1. afterfit4 has been removedffromzthe=roll..3.. Inisuchmasel.-

ai suitable backing plate.v or: platenilneedi be. provided; The tool'. 5f skivesV4 a thin: tapered; ribbon'.

from the sheet 1 leaving:a tapered2groove;orf recess therein.l If desiredi to eliminate waste. or

scrap, such-ribbonmay be fed-tagainlwithnthe.Varie.. colored; mass :to thev rolls yof? the-calender to formx further portions of the sheet.A

The skiving vtool 5 preferably consists: of; au thin metal strip 8 having alsharpened'` andtapere'du` edge 9 bent into the form 'shown in EigureriY The tool`51is bolted to -aimetal-baror rod=IlI-1held;in.a=

barrel II adjustably mounted uponashaftl |'2"ex.

tending.A acrossthe device. The skiv-ingftool need be.adjustable:withprecision since thesheet` 'I from which itf skivesfa ribbon' is-usually-quite thin. To adjust theskivingtooll',4 thereis pro'- vided a handwheel I3 secured to a threadedrod ILISl which extends through the barrel I Il and 'into a threaded opening. |52- provided in the bar.l I0.

The bar I0 is keyed to the barrel i I toprevent its` move the skiving tool 5 toward and fromzthe rollV 3 thusLvarying the' depth: of. the recess lor: groove skivedzinthe formed-sheet.. It`willzbe appreciated. such adjusting mechanism'.permitsigrooves to ber formed of'any desiredl depth or; even iff desired nectedicurves which open in opposite directions and each of which has a wavy contour, as shown in FigureB.

I provide a circular edge.- forming or severing. tool Ihaving-itsCutting-isurface formedof a` plurality of connectedsigmoidal curvesof. wavy.

Preferably, the tool. II islikewise disposedadjacenrl thetroll 3-inorderK that such roll mayserve asa-.platen therefor, and issupported by a-lever I8-.pivoted on.aH shaft I9 extending across the device.v The.- lowerf portion 20 of the lever I8 engages and-is-heldincontact with-apin i2 I heldina-suppOrtfZZ.: As thepin-.Z I- is moved outwardly, i1-rotatesthe lever Iiifabout` the shaft I9 to move thefsevering:toolLIS-.upwardZ ly toward the roll 3s Asthepin: 2Iis retracted.

' within the support 22; the;weightof the severing tool. I 6 is suiicientto. rotate the .-lever-I 8 -about .the shaft thus movingthe. tool. I6 ;in.the opposite d1- rection. The ,tool I 6 .is adjustable laterally of,- the-- shaft I8 yin order.. that the sheet may be.severed.irl4 sections of anyy desired width.. Preferably., the cutter I6Y'is so disposed that the` sheetlis severed: in.- sections at the: recessed. portion so. that each section terminatesinran-irregular tapered edge.- Thus similar sections. 'Ia-and :1b :areproduced each;

of. whichY possesses a. tapered: irregular; sinuous.

edge. The sections; are; placed Y. on af conveyonZf which carries them to a table 25 positioned, ad jacent the'rolls'of thec,rossr,ol1ing4 calendenl. Such sections; 1a.; andi 1b: while.- traveling on x the f. conveyor; are subdivided, either; manuallyforfme: chanically; into suitablesize tube fedztothefcrossr-r rolling calender: 2E'.

The `subdividectslreetsiare;disposed .rinc overlap;-v ping` relation: on. thee table 25 with. the taperedi irregular edge' of. oneasheet disposedfadjacent the;- facerT of the.'V other4 sheet'. As showni in` Figurer. 1; thesections'; are fed .1 tothe@ crosserolling.; calender; face-down and accordingly. the irregular.- edgesof thefsheetzisthe rear edge.. Of;course;.if'the.con"- tinuous'sheetwZ-l is;to;be:.formedfface-fup; thezirfregular edge.wouldibexthatiedge; ofthe sheetarstz. fedito the .cross-rollingzcalendeiz` The .overlapped sheets.` are fed tothe-rolls :ofthe'eross-rolling cah-4 ender '25, at right :angles '.touform .az continuous in.- Y tegral sheetgZFI Iandto ifurther. shorten:A and spread: the graining.. to form; variegationsl on.. the. facci thereofwhich resemblezmarble;

In operation,` a;cohesive: vari-colored masszof.` linoleum4v composition` is; fed" to: the'. two-roll calf., ender` 2 andl formed; into az. sheet IS having: a. definite 1 directionaligraining; While the .sheet' 1; adheres toV xthe;coldi rollr3,' the Askving .tool Siskives aeportionioff the under surface yof z such .sheet so as 1 to reduce z itssthickness; preferably au. its central i portion. The-edge;forrningf too-ll I6; then; while the: sheet.y stilliadhereszto the .coldsrollg' severs .the`

sheet at the skived portion thereof into two sections each of which is provided with a tapered, irregular sinuous edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated sigmoidal curves. The sections are doctored from the cold roll 3 and placed upon a conveyor 20 which carries them to the cross-rolling calender 26. During their passage on the conveyor 24, the sections are Subdivided, manually or mechanically, into sheets of suitable size for feeding to the cross-rolling calender.

The sheets are placed in overlapping relationship on the table 25 with the tapered irregular edge of one sheet disposed adjacent the face of the other section and are fed to the rolls of the cross-rolling calender 26. As shown in Figure 1, such sheets are fed face-down so that the irregular edge is the rearward edge of the sheet. The sheets are cross-rolled to spread and shorten the graining and to form a continuous integral sheet which may be placed upon a suitable back'- ing or fed to the dies of the rotary inlaying machine as well-known in the industry.

The practice outlined above substantially or entirely eliminates the visible discontinuity between overlapped sheets. Distortion of face graining at the overlapped edges does not occur to any substantial extent and accordingly, a continuous variegated linoleum sheet is produced in which the graining presents substantially the desired appearance over the face of the sheet. The enormous waste created by hook-on is entirely eliminated and a more desirable and decorative sheet is produced. The improvements in the cross-rolling process above described add little or nothing to the costs involved in making the sheet. The additional apparatus required in order to effectuate such improvements is inexpensive and does not require frequent replacement. Needless to say, however, the chief advantage of my invention resides in the substantial or entire elimination of grain distortion at those sections of the continuous sheet where overlapped sheets are adhered to one another.

While I have described and illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood my invention is not so limited since it may be otherwise embodied or practiced within the scope of the following claims,

I claim:

1. In combination with a sheeting calender, a skiving tool adapted to form a tapered recess extending longitudinally of the underl surface of a sheet of hard surface covering material, means to adjust said tool to vary the depth of the recess, and a rotary knife having a cutting edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated sigmcidal curves engageable with said formed sheet in the recessed area thereof for severing said sheet at the recessed portion thereof into sections each of which possesses an irregular tapered edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated sigmoidal curves.

2. In combination with a sheeting calender, a skiving tool adapted to form a tapered recess extending longitudinally of the under surface of a sheet of hard surface covering material, means to adjust said tool to vary the depth of the recess, and a rotary knife having an undulated cutting edge engageable with said formed sheet in the recessed area thereof to sever said sheet at the recessed portion into sections having an irregular tapered edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated curves.

3. In a device for making a. variegated sheet of y,hard surface covering, the combination of a sheeting calender adapted to form a sheet having a definite directional graining, a skiving tool disposed adjacent thereto adapted to form a tapered recess extending longitudinally of the under surface of a formed sheet, means to adjust said tool to vary the depth of the recess, and a rotary knife having a cutting edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated sigmoidal curves engageable with said formed sheet in the recessed area thereof to sever the sheet at the recessed portion into sections having an irregular tapered edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated sigmoidal curves.

4. In a device for making a variegated sheet of hard surface covering, the combination of a sheeting calender adapted to form a sheet having a definite directional graining, a skiving tool disposed adjacent thereto adapted to form a recess extending longitudinally of the under surface of a formed sheet, means to adjust said tool to vary the depth of the recess, and a circular knife having a cutting edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated sigmoidal curves engageable with said formed sheet in the recessed area thereof to sever said sheet at the recessed portion into sections having an irregular edge composed of a plurality of connected, undulated sigmoidal curves.

5. In combination with a sheeting calender, a skiving tool disposed adjacent said calender to engage a sheet of hard surface covering material formed on the calender and movable therewith to skive a narrow curved portion therefrom longitudinally of the undersurface of the sheet, and a rotary knife positioned adjacent said calender and forward of said skiving tool in the direction of travel of said sheet to engage said sheet in the recessed area thereof and sever it into two sections, each of which has a cut edge formed by said knife and a curved portior leading from said edge to the body of said sheet.

6. In combination with a sheeting calender, a skiving cutter disposed adjacent said calender to engage a sheet of hard surface covering material formed on the calender and movable therewith to skive a narrow inclined ,portion therefrom longitudinally of the under surface of the sheet, and severing means positioned adjacent said calender and forward of said skiving cutter in the direction of travel of said sheet to engage said sheet and sever the same in the recessed area thereof into two sections, each of which has a cut edge formed by said severing means and an inclined portion leading from said cut edge to the body of said sheet.

VIRGIL SPENCER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,289,485 Lewis Dec. 31, 1918 1,402.160 Gwozdz Jan. 3, 1922 1,445,990 Bourn Feb. 20, 1923 1,628,836 Gammeter May 17, 1927 2,310,495 Summersgill Feb. 9, 1943 1,763,314 McConaughey June 10, 1930 1,004,027 Holtkott Sept. 26, 1911 1,256,658 Cameron et al. Feb. 19, 1918 1.651.837 Richey Dec. 6. 1927 

